BHGI Attends White House Luncheon for Breast Cancer Advocates

From left, JoAnne Zujewski, National Cancer Institute; Diana Rowden, international director, Susan G. Komen for the Cure; Hala Moddelmog, president & CEO, Susan G. Komen for the Cure; First Lady Laura Bush; Leslie Sullivan, senior program manager, Breast Health Global Initiative (BHGI); and Benjamin O. Anderson, MD, chair & director, Breast Health Global Initiative (BHGI)

First Lady Laura Bush hosted a luncheon this summer at the White House in honor of key leaders in the field of breast health advocacy and research. Invitees to the luncheon included BHGI delegates to Susan G. Komen for the Cure's upcoming "Ignite the Promise: Global Advocate Summit," Benjamin O. Anderson, M.D., chair and director; and Leslie Sullivan, senior program manager. The BHGI, founded by Anderson and co-sponsored by Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and Komen for the Cure, is an ongoing global health alliance devoted to improving the breast health care of medically underserved women.

In concert with the Komen's landmark summit, the BHGI's "Global Summit on International Breast Health-Implementation" will be held Oct. 1–4, 2007 in Budapest, Hungary. The summit will lay the foundation for expanding the BHGI's "Guideline for International Breast Health and Cancer Control," developed by the BHGI in publications in 2002 and 2006. In Budapest, 90 delegates, hailing from five continents and 39 countries, will address guideline implementation concerning early detection, diagnosis, treatment, and health care systems in geographically and culturally different regions of the world. The revised Guideline will be published in 2008.

While major progress has been made to improve breast cancer outcomes in developed countries, resource constraints continue to limit the application of early detection, diagnosis and treatment strategies in most of the world. As a result, breast care Guideline from economically privileged regions such as the U.S. and Western Europe have limited utility in low- or mid-level resource countries. Instead, these countries need to implement breast cancer control programs that are appropriate for their respective cultures, resources, and competing health care needs. The BHGI strives to implement evidence-based Guideline by which economically practical improvements can be sequentially introduced within the context of resource constraints to optimize breast health care.

Mrs. Bush, a long-time breast cancer advocate, hosted the luncheon to extend her appreciation for the delegates' tireless efforts to improve the breast health of women worldwide.

"We were tremendously honored to have had the opportunity to present the work of the BHGI at the White House," said Anderson. "As we move forward and continue to adapt and improve our 'Guideline for International Breast Health and Cancer Control' as well as launch additional demonstration projects, we hope that our work will become an increasingly useful reference for nations of limited resources combating the burden and devastation of breast cancer."

The BHGI is currently launching international pilot demonstration projects to improve breast health outcomes among women and test, validate and expand the Guideline. Initial projects are set to launch in Colombia, Romania, Indonesia and Uganda.

For more information about BGHI on the Web, go to www.fhcrc.org/science/phs/bhgi or Email senior program manager Leslie Sullivan, lsulliva@fhcrc.org.